Wild Hope
by LoveInTechnicolor
Summary: Santana Lopez has been head over heels for Brittany S. Pierce for as long as she can remember. After unexpectedly crossing paths, a set of unfortunate circumstances causes Santana to spend an entire afternoon at the blue-eyed mechanic's garage and effectively sending her down a brand new path she had never thought possible in even her wildest dreams.


The Spotlight Diner is not exactly the most popular restaurant in town, but it is certainly good enough to fill the place of Breadstix when Santana Lopez short on time during her lunch break. Walking through the front doors of the establishment, the young woman glances over at the hostess desk to find her friend, Rachel Berry, working her normal Tuesday shift. It doesn't take long for Rachel to catch sight of her, giving a small wave in greeting before going back ringing up the bill for her current customer, a rather familiar blonde.

It does not take long for Santana's brain to register exactly who she is looking. In fact, the realization comes almost instantaneously as she feels her heart start thumping in her chest. The woman's name is Brittany Pierce, a local mechanic Santana has had a crush on ever since the beginning of their freshman year of high school.

Taking a moment to observe the blonde, she notices the navy polo she has tucked neatly into her pants that adorns the logo for Pierce Automotive embroidered into the material. Though the brunette does her best not to blatantly ogle the beautiful woman paying for her lunch, she still manages to fall short of her goal as Rachel catches onto what is happening. Surprisingly enough, however, the other brunette manages to refrain from making a spectacle out what she has witnessed. The only action that gives away the fact that she even notices Santana's staring is the small knowing smirk the hostess fails to suppress as she shifts her focus back to her customer.

It does not take long for the two women to finish their transaction. Once done, Rachel glances over at her friend and teases, "You might as well put up your wallet, Santana, because I still owe you for buying dinner last week."

"It was only a couple of cheap tacos from a food truck, Berry. Stop making such a big deal about it," Santana argues, attempting to make her words carry a tone of indifference as she proceeds to take out the proper amount of cash and hold it out for the other brunette to take.

"No, Santana! I refuse to let you pay. This one is on me," Rachel continues to refuse, pushing her friend's hand away while glancing back and forth between the two patrons. "Now, give me just one moment, and I will be right back with both of your orders."

Brittany instantly looks over to Santana with a broad smile as soon as Rachel is gone, playfully chuckling out, "I guess somethings really do never change, huh?"

"Yeah, she is still just as hardheaded as ever," the brunette grumbles under her breath as she shoves the money back into her purse. It is only then that she realizes the comment must have been spoken just loud enough for Brittany to hear as she watches the woman suddenly throw her head back in laughter before they each quiet back down once again.

Rachel manages to return before the silence that develops between the pair has a chance to become an uncomfortable one, holding out a bag of food for Brittany to take as she informs, "Tina wanted me to let you know that she threw in an extra order of food for Mike. She was hoping you wouldn't mind bringing it to him."

"Nah, I don't mind at all! Thanks again, Rachel," Brittany responds before tipping her head at the other brunette. "It was good to see you, Santana. Don't be a stranger."

"Oh, um-Yes. You, uh, too?" Santana momentarily stumbles over her words as she fails to form a complete thought, causing Brittany to release another airy giggle. Santana blushes even harder than before as her body tenses with embarrassment, but she manages to ease up once the young mechanic moves past her and out the restaurant. Allowing her eyes to remain trained on the spot where she last sees Brittany, Santana continues to watch on as the front door slowly closes behind the woman.

"Geez, you still have it _bad_. After what? Almost a decade?" Rachel inquires with a knowing smirk as she breaks Santana out of her daze.

Turning her focus back towards the hostess, she finds the woman already holding out a second bag of food for her to take. Snatching the plastic sack from her friend's hand, Santana grumbles, "Shut it, Streisand."

The server rapidly throws her hands up in mock defeat, conceding, "Alright, alright. I was just pointing out the obvious."

"I know," Santana mutters, allowing her shoulders to slump in forward slightly. "She's just-She's Brittany, you know? How could I not like her?"

"Wow, who'd have thought the HBIC of McKinley High would still be hung up on the same girl after all these years? This might be kind of obvious, Santana, but you two could have probably already started dating her by now if you would just girl up and admit your feelings to her. That is, if the rumors from back in high school were true."

"Ugh, not this again. She never liked me, Rachel. At least, I'm sure not like _that_."

"That's not what I heard."

"What you heard was probably just a lie some dumbass jocks came up with because they were too bored with their own lame, moronic lives."

"Or they were telling the truth and she actually liked you."

"Berry, let's be real. Brittany Susan Pie-"

"Oh, God. You even remember her middle name?"

"Yeah, yeah. Make fun all you want. All I am trying to say is that Brittany Susan Pierce is the most beautiful, kindhearted genius who has ever graced this godforsaken planet, and while I would absolutely _love_ to entertain the idea that she would actually be interested in a person like me, I still owe it to myself be realistic about those odds."

"What in the world is so unrealistic about her being interested in you? I mean, she's an out and proud bisexual, and you are kind of gorgeous."

"Yes, Berry, I am well aware that being a woman with the goods," Santana mentions, motioning to her ample chest, "is most likely not be a negative factor in this equation. What I'm talking about is the fact that I am an insecure bitch who hid behind a cheerleader persona all throughout high school to avoid having to accept the fact that I am a raging lesbian, which I actually mean that quite literally. Like, I genuinely have problems with always going to the yelling place because I have so much rage. My breasts literally ache with it, I get so mad sometimes."

"Yes, all of that might have been true way back when, but that still doesn't make the older, wiser you unworthy of love."

"Okay, I think we've had enough rehashing of old times for one day, Babs," Santana grunts as she glances down to look at the designer watch strapped to her wrist. "I should probably be heading back to the office anyway. We should hang out soon. I might even let you drag me to that bar that has the karaoke night again as long as you promise to buy the first round and keep the Broadway selections to a minimum."

An elated expression immediately forms the Rachel's face as she processes her friend's offer and giddily informs, "Deal! I will be holding you to that offer, Santana, so you better not forget."

"Yeah, yeah. I won't. Anyway, thanks again for lunch."

"Don't even worry about it! Have a good rest of the day."

"Will do. See ya, Rachel," the woman assures with a pseudo-salute before she turns to head outside.

Walking across the parking lot, Santana unlocks her sleek new car and slips into the driver's seat. After placing her takeout on the passenger floorboard, she slides the key into the ignition and turns it only to hear a loud whirling noise from the engine turning. She holds off for a brief moment before trying again, but the car continues to let out the same squealing sound to no avail.

Bending her head forward to rest between her hands atop the steering wheel, she quietly scolds herself for not having seen this coming. It is true that the vehicle has been giving her some trouble the past couple of weeks, but it has never just simply refused to start before. If anything, she had figured it was just the brand new car breaking itself in after being purchased a month ago.

Suddenly, there is a loud knock on the window that causes Santana's entire body to give a sharp jolt. Snapping her gaze over to look out the driver's side window, she quickly spots the same blonde she had seen only moments before and slaps a hand to her chest in an attempt to calm the forceful beating of her heart. Rolling down the window, she shakily yelps out, "Holy shit, Brittany! I thought you already left."

"Oh! Sorry for scaring you, Santana. I was just getting ready to leave when I noticed you might be having some car trouble. I thought I might offer to help, if that's okay."

"Oh, um," Santana momentarily hesitates, still trying to calm herself down as she processes the woman's offer. "Yeah. Yes. I'd actually really appreciate that. Thank you."

"No problem at all. Now, let's see what we've got going on." Pointing at the front end of the car, she asks, "Mind if I take a look under the hood?"

"Knock yourself out," Santana assures, reaching down to pull the lever designed to pop open the bonnet of the vehicle. She then watches as the hood is lifted and locked into an upwards position, effectively blocking the other woman from her sight.

"Okay, now try to crank the engine again please," Brittany's voice requests while the blonde mechanic continues to inspect the engine compartment. Confused, Santana does what is asked of her, causing the motor to recreate the same noise as before. "Alright, that's enough. Thank you," Brittany adds after only a few seconds, much to Santana's relief.

Taking a moment to wipe her hands off on her jeans, the mechanic walks over to the driver's side door and notifies Santana, "Well, it looks like you might have a dead battery. I can get my car over here and try to give you a jump. If that works, we can head over to the shop to test it with one of our multimeters. If the battery is bad, we can get you a replacement installed. That is, as long as you have the time and are okay with that plan."

"Yeah, I guess that's the best option we have at the moment. Let me just call my mother to let her know that I won't be coming back to work anytime soon," the woman informs as she reaches over to retrieve her phone from the purse seated in the passenger's seat.

"Oh, I can drive you to the office if you need me to. It honestly wouldn't be any trouble."

"No, it's alright. She will understand," the brunette responds, giving a nonchalant wave of her hand while scrolling through her contacts until she finds the one she is looking. Before connecting the call, she assures, "You can go ahead and get your truck. This should only take a second."

Once Brittany is out of ears reach, Santana dials her mother's office number and listens as the line begins to ring. After only a few short moments, the woman hears a familiar voice answer the call, greeting, "Hello, this is Maribel Lopez with Lopez Financial Services. How may I help you?"

"Hey, Mami, it's me. I just wanted to let you know that I won't be returning to work anytime soon. My car battery apparently died while I was out picking up lunch so I'm about to take it in to get it replaced."

"Okay, Sweetheart. Do you need me to call a tow truck or anything?"

"No, that's okay. Brittany Pierce is here helping me out. She's actually about to jump start my car so we can drive it over to her shop."

"Ah, I see. Brittany Susan Pierce, huh?"

"Yes, Brittany _Susan_ Pierce, Mother. Look, Rachel has already given me enough crap about that so I would prefer to not have anyone else teasing me today."

"I'm sorry, Santanita. I promise to leave you be."

"Thank God," Santana hums out in a relieved tone when she notices that Brittany parking her car right in front of her own. "Hey, Brittany's back so I should probably let you go for now."

"Okay, don't worry about things here. I'll have any calls you may have forwarded to me for the rest of the day."

"Perfect. Thanks again."

"You're welcome, Honey. I hope Brittany can get you all fixed up."

"I'm sure she will. Talk to you later, Mami."

"Bye, Mija."

Brittany appears back at her car window almost as soon as the line goes dead, leaning over slightly so she can properly see Santana and asks, "Everything alright with work?"

"Yep, my mom has it covered. You ready?"

The blonde beams at the woman as she gives her a thumbs up in confirmation and quietly turns to walk back towards her own vehicle. Once she manages to properly hook up the jumper cables to each of their batteries, she lets her truck run for a few more minutes before giving Santana the signal to turn her key in the ignition. Both women give a long sigh of relief at the sound of the car's engine roaring to life after only a few short moments of it failing to turn over. With a pleased grin, Brittany walks back over to safely remove the wires so they can make their way to the garage.

The drive is a rather quick one, and before she knows it, Santana is making her way past a familiar sign that reads _Pierce Automotive: Lima's One Stop Auto Shop._ Parking in front of the establishment, Santana stands up out of the vehicle and realizes, "God, I haven't been here in years. In fact, I'm pretty sure the only time I have ever been here was when my abuelo had to bring his old clunker in for an oil change while my parents were out of town on business, but that was forever ago. It's obvious that there have been some major renovations since then."

"Yeah, I actually had some work done on the place as soon as my grandfather gave me his blessing."

"Well, I certainly like the changes," Santana notes as she takes in the new white and navy blue color scheme that has replaced the old green and red paint job she remembers. "It makes the place look more open and inviting."

"Thanks! I think so, too," Brittany chirps as she continues to lead Santana inside through on of the open garage doors.

As they make their way through the Pierce Automotive, the shop owner proceeds to greet each of her mechanics, and Santana cannot help but admire the level of respect each of the workers appear to have for the woman. The level of esteem they hold for their boss shows clearly on each and every one of their faces as the women pass them on their way through the establishment.

Just as they walk past a row of tool boxes, the pair spot Burt Hummel, the father of one of their high school classmates, knelt down beside another mechanic lying underneath the truck they are currently working on. Once the man catches sight of them, he gives a nod of his head in greeting as a pleasant smile pulls at his lips.

"Hello, Burt. How are things going over here?"

"We're just about done replacing Mr. Wortham's master cylinder and brake fluid. All that's left after that is an oil change and tire rotation, which we should have done in no time."

"Good! That's what I like to hear."

Just then, a familiar burly gentleman rolls out from under the vehicle who Santana recognizes to be David Karofsky, another one of their fellow classmates and the longtime boyfriend of Kurt Hummel. After giving the brunette a small nod in acknowledgement, David turns to inform Brittany, "Kurt was looking for you earlier, Britt. I told him I'd send you his way once you got back."

"Alright, I'll head over to his office once I deliver this food," the blonde responds, motioning her head to bag of takeout she still held in her hand. Turning to continue her path through the garage, Brittany throws over her shoulder, "Thanks for the heads up, Dave."

"No problem, Boss," the young mechanic calls out after her before laying back down on the mechanic's creeper and returning to his work.

It does not take long for Brittany to find Michael Chang by the back sink, thoroughly washing his hands with an orange-scented degreasing scrub. Clapping her hand on his shoulder, Brittany hold up their meals for the man to see and lets him know, "Tina asked me to make a special delivery. Hungry?"

"I'm starving! Thanks Britt," Mike excitedly grinned as he quickly dries his hands on a blue shop towel and takes the container of food Brittany holds out for him. Noticing Santana standing a few feet behind his friend, a curious expression crosses his face as he looks back and forth between the two as he inquires, "Are you two on a lunch date or something?"

The two women's eyes each bug out briefly before Brittany rushes to sputter out, "W-What? No! Not at all. Santana was just having some car troubles, so we drove over here to get her all fixed up."

"Oh, wow. I'm so sorry about that. I wasn't thinking," Mike rushes to amend with a faint blush dusting his cheeks, quickly motioning towards the bag of food Santana was holding, as well, "I just saw that you both had food from the diner and assumed. My bad."

"It's alright. I was just planning to eat some while Brittany works on my ca-"

"Oh, thank God you are back, Brittany! Dalton Auto won't stop calling again. They keep trying to make offers," the shop's receptionist and accountant, Kurt Hummel, abruptly cuts in before Santana can finish her statement. For once, however, she does not mind the interruption as she chances a look over at the blonde only to find Brittany standing there with a tense look on her face.

"Okay, I'll deal with it once I am done replacing Santana's battery," Brittany notifies through gritted teeth, visibly irritated with the news she has just received.

"Sorry, Britt."

"It's alright, Kurt. It's not your fault," Brittany assures while setting her food down on a nearby tool box. Turning back around to face the front of the shop, the blonde asks, "Ready to get started, Santana?"

"Uh, yeah, sure thing," Santana timidly replies as she moves to carefully follow behind the blonde, unsure what else she could possibly do after Brittany's rapid change in mood. It isn't until about midway through Brittany changing her battery that she decides to finally break the silence that had developed between them, quietly asking, "Hey, everything okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine. Just another corporate auto shop taking all our business and then attempting to buy us out once they have successfully forced us into the red," Brittany grunts in an aggravated tone before suddenly remembering who she is talking to. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be venting like that with customers, even ones I've sort of known for years."

"It's okay. If you want, maybe I could try to help. I mean, I work in investing now, so-I don't know. I'm just sort of spit balling here."

"Thanks for your offer, Santana, but I'll have to turn it down. Sorry," Brittany states, her tone blunter than usual which catches Santana completely off guard.

"Oh, o-okay then," Santana stutters out at hearing Brittany's abrupt response. "I hope it isn't because I've only been working at my mom's firm for a few months. I mean, I am completely aware that I'm still fresh out of college, but my mom, you know, she is an extremely experienced investor. I'm sure together we can figure out a way help you-"

"No, I promise it's not about that at all. Experienced or not, I am absolutely positive you are good at what you do," Brittany interrupts before the brunette can get the wrong idea. Releasing a small sigh, Brittany calmly elaborates, "If I am being honest, the reason I cannot accept your offer is strictly because of my pride. My grandfather never needed anyone else's help when it came to keeping his business afloat. He was always able to find a way to make things work, so I owe it to his legacy to trust in myself enough to find a way out of this. Alone."

"Oh, um, alright. That-That's totally understandable. Of course," Santana stumbles over her words, clearly embarrassed with herself for even speaking up while also hoping she has not made Brittany feel uncomfortable or pressured to accept outside help. "Just forget I even said anything. I'm sure you know what you are doing. You're super smart, especially when it comes to numbers, so you probably don't even need my help."

Brittany is just about to respond to the brunette's statement when she feels her thoughts come to a screeching halt, leaving her mouth gaping and the unspoken words still resting on the tip of her tongue. Once Santana's statement fully catch up to her, the blonde mechanic quirks her eyebrows and asks, "Wait, how do you know that?"

"Huh?"

"How do you know that I am good with numbers?"

"Because I, um-" The question leaves Santana's brain reeling once more, but she soon regains her bearings and answers, "I mean, how could I not? You were on the academic decathlon team. Our school would have never managed to win the State Championship our senior year if it hadn't been for you getting that question right about some really complicated math theory. God, what was it called again? Ree-something."

"The Riemann hypothesis?"

A triumphant grin quickly spreads its way across the woman's face as she excitedly answers, "Yeah! That's the one!"

Brittany appears to be even more stunned as before as she confesses, "I can't believe you even know about that, let alone remember it."

"Of course I do! Doesn't everyone?"

"No, not at all. Hell, almost everyone still thinks I'm just a dumb blonde who barely got her high school diploma."

"Well, the vast majority of the people in this town are complete idiots, so I wouldn't put too much weight in their opinions."

"Thank you for saying that. It really means a lot to hear someone say that. Also, please don't get the wrong idea about what I said. I really do appreciate your offer. It's just that it is only my second year of owning the shop, and I just feel the need to prove to everyone, including myself, that the faith my grandfather had wasn't ill placed."

"I get it, Brittany. Honestly. Just know that the offer still stands if you ever change your mind. There's no expiration date with this one."

"Well, thanks again for offering."

"No worries, Britt. It's the least I can do," Santana reaffirms as she starts taking out her wallet. "So, how much do I owe you for today?"

"Nothing. Consider it a gift for being a first time customer."

Snapping her gaze back up to glare at the woman, Santana argues, "Brittany, I don't mean to overstep any more than I already have but giving away car batteries isn't exactly good business practice. We both know you cannot afford to give me free service, so just tell me how much I owe before I just hand you three hundred dollars and walk out."

"Nope, I'll just mail it back to your house if you do."

"Damn it. Come on, Brittany! You did me a huge favor today, and I am not leaving properly paying you back," Santana asserts to no avail. Quickly realizing Brittany was not going to budge on her response, the brunette rolls her eyes in exasperation before glancing around in an attempt to find the nearest mechanic she happens to know. After a few seconds of looking, she notices a certain ex-football player in the middle of tightening the bolts to the front tire of an SUV and calls out, "Hey, Karofsky. Sorry to interrupt, but can you please tell me how much a battery replacement generally costs?"

"Dave, do not answer that question!" Brittany snaps out at the man, causing his body to seize up in surprise.

Santana's facial expression hardens even further as she allows herself to slip back into her high school mentality, giving the man her best death glare as she growls, "No, David, you tell me the price right this minute or I'll be forced to tell Kurt every single embarrassing thing I have ever learned about you, including that time you-"

"Okay! Enough, enough!" the man rapidly shouts out. He then shifts his gaze back and forth between the two women with a conflicted expression before nervously informing the brunette, "We, um, typically charge about eighty-five dollars to put in a new battery, but the one Brittany installed is the premium model, which usually goes for roughly a hundred and twenty."

"Ah, fantastic! Sorry for having to play dirty, Karofsky. I promise to cover your entire tab the next time I see you at the bar," Santana apologizes with a sympathetic look before forking out enough cash to cover the costs. Holding it out for the other woman to take, Santana teases with a victorious grin, "Keep the change, Britt-Britt."

Though still frustrated with how the events played out, the shop owner still takes the offered payment from the other woman and tosses it onto the countertop beside the register. After ringing up the expenses, she slips the money into the drawer and takes out a few bills and coinage before walking back over, holding the change and a receipt out for Santana to take while informing, "We don't accept tips."

Releasing a quiet sigh, Santana immediately surrenders as she responds, "Okay, fine. I understand. Sorry again about having to resort to using dirty tactics. It just didn't feel right to not pay you for all your help, and that was the quickest way to figuring out how much I owe."

"It's fine. Just please try to refrain from scaring my mechanics shitless the next time you're in here," Brittany requests as she finishes up the battery installation, a barely-there grin of her own starting to slowly dance its way across her lips.

"I'll be on my very best behavior. I promise," Santana teases before tacking on, "That is, as long as you promise to keep my previous offer in mind."

"Don't worry, I will. Just don't get offended if I never take you up on it."

"I hope you won't need to."

"Neither do I," Brittany chuckles out with an airy laugh. Realizing that their brief encounter was coming to a close, Brittany escorts the woman to the car's front door and pulls it open for her as she tells the brunette, "You know, I never realized how stubborn you are. You might even have Rachel beat."

"I guess it's exactly like you said, then. Some things never change," Santana chuckles as she turns to leave. "I'll see you around, Brittany."

"Yeah, see you around, Santana," Brittany calls after her, her small grin pulling into a giddy smile as she watches the woman pull out of the garage and drive away.


End file.
